UPDATE 1-Mexico raises infrastructure spending target

MEXICO CITY, April 28 (Reuters) - Mexican President Enrique
Pena Nieto on Monday raised his goal for infrastructure spending
to 7.7 trillion pesos ($587 billion) by 2018, in a bid to boost
growth in Latin America's number 2 economy.

The new target, which includes both public and private
investment, is nearly twice the 4 trillion peso goal announced
by Pena Nieto last July for his term in office, which ends in
four years.

"With bigger and better infrastructure, there are more
opportunities to attract productive investment, generate jobs
and improve families' income," Pena Nieto said at an event in
Mexico City.

"At the end of this administration, we want a country with
better communication, with roads in a good state and high
quality highways."

A spokesman for the communication and transportation
ministry said public spending would account for more than 4.8
billion pesos of the total while over 2.8 billion pesos would
come from the private sector.

Over 1.32 trillion pesos of the investment should go to
communication and transportation, the President said, while the
government expects funds of nearly 3.9 trillion pesos to flow
into the energy sector.

Part of Pena Nieto's plan to boost growth involves a raft of
structural reforms approved last year, including an overhaul of
the energy sector that allows private investment and a bid to
boost competition in the telecommunications industry.

The pace of growth slowed to a four-year low of 1.1 percent
last year but analysts polled by the central bank expect the
economy to expand by 3.09 percent in 2014.
($1 = 13.1267 Mexican Pesos)
(Reporting By Alexandra Alper; Editing by Ken Wills)